Resource - Amplitude Media

LIMB GUIDE
LOSS
Resource
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A practical guide for
preparing for, adapting to,
and living with limb loss.
Published by Amplitude Media Group • www.amplitude-media.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION 1
PREPARING FOR AMPUTATION SURGERY
10 Dealing with Amputation and Its Aftermath
12 Your Healthcare Team
18 Your Treatment Plan: A Roadmap to Care
19 Amputation Surgery: What to Expect
24 Psychological Aspects of Limb Amputation
28 Building a Peer Support Network
34 Finances and Health Insurance:
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Be Prepared
SECTION 2
ADAPTING TO LIMB LOSS
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42 Postoperative Care
46 Physical Rehabilitation
51 Emotional Rehabilitation
56 Mobility and Assistive Devices
Mobility and Assistive Devices:
The Prosthetic Option
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68 Advocating for Insurance
Coverage of Your Prosthesis
71 Adaptating Your Home to
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Help Regain Your Independence
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Limb Loss Resource Guide
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Activities of Daily Living and
Assistive Devices
80
Preventing and Dealing with Additional
Physical Complications Related to Your
Limb Loss
83
Preventing Additional Amputations
in People with Diabetes
85 Preventing and Managing Pain
Amplitude Media Group
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION 3
LIVING WITH LIMB LOSS
90 Achieving Long-Term Success with Your
Healthcare Team
93 Preventing Diabetes Complications through
98 Sports and Recreational Activities
for Amputees
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00 Practical Tips and Creating Financing
Options for Ongoing Prosthetic and
Rehab Needs
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04 Protecting Your Prosthetic Investment
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Proper Nutrition and Physical Activity
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06 Returning to Work After Amputation
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09 Advancing Amputee Awareness and Rights
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11 Developing and Celebrating Your New
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Identity as an Amputee
116 Glossary of Terms
SECTION 4
RESOURCES
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22 Advocacy
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25 Educational/Informational
126 Limb Provision/Prosthetic Assistance
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28 Peer Support
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28 Sports & Recreation
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Preparing for
Amputation Surgery
Dealing with Amputation and Its Aftermath................................... 10
Your Healthcare Team...............................................................................12
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Your Treatment Plan................................................................................. 18
Amputation Surgery: What to Expect............................................... 19
Psychological Aspects of Limb Amputation...................................24
Building a Peer Support Network........................................................28
Finances and Health Insurance: Be Prepared..................................34
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DEALING WITH AMPUTATION AND ITS AFTERMATH
DEALING WITH
AMPUTATION
AND ITS AFTERMATH
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“How will I pay my bills?”
“ Will I be able to
date, marry, and
have children? ”
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“What will
happen to
my career?”
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“Will I always be dependent on others?”
“Will I ever be
happy again?”
“ Is my life over?”
That last question is perhaps the most frightening and
all-consuming one. It may be difficult to accept now,
but the experiences of thousands of amputees
offer a strong and clear answer:
“No, your life is not over.”
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Limb Loss Resource Guide
There is no doubt that
amputation will have a
significant impact on your
life—physically, emotionally,
financially, and socially.
Regardless of the number of
limbs you’ve lost and at what
level, if you want to do the
things you did before and live
your life like you always have,
you’re going to have to work
harder. And if you want to do
new and different things—
live beyond your former life—
which is what many amputees
choose to do, you’re going to
have to work a lot harder.
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As a new or prospective amputee, your mind is probably
overflowing with worries and questions that you can’t answer:
Fortunately, there are ways
to help minimize the negative
impact of amputation on your
life. In fact, that’s what this
guide is all about. Throughout
these pages, you will discover
a wealth of information and
resources to help you deal
with your limb loss and
regain your life.
Although it might seem
unfathomable to you
now, when put in difficult
circumstances, human
beings can be amazingly
resilient. It’s as if there
is something dormant
inside each of us that, once
provoked, compels us to face
adversity and say, “Just wait.
I’ll show you. Don’t tell me
what I can and can’t do.”
Amplitude Media Group
Human Resilience after Amputation
Carl Brashear, the subject of the movie Men of
Honor, lost his left leg after a pipe struck his
leg during a bomb recovery operation in 1966.
In 1970, he became the U.S. Navy’s first black
Master Diver. Brashear used to say, “It’s not a
sin to get knocked down; it’s a sin to stay down.”
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Believe strongly in your
potential. Limb loss does not
have to prevent you from going
to school, having a job, getting
married, having children,
participating in sports, and
enjoying a full life.
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Set a goal, and work toward it.
Your goal can be big or small as
long as it gives you something
to strive for. Focus intensely on
your goal, and move toward
it step by step. Break large,
overwhelming tasks into smaller,
more manageable ones, and take
them on one at a time.
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Sarah Reinertsen was born with proximal
femoral focal deficiency (PFFD), a birth
anomaly that most commonly involves a
deformed hip and a shortened femur bone.
She had her left leg amputated above the
knee when she was 7 years old. In 2004,
she participated in her first Ironman World
Championship—a grueling 140.6-mile
triathlon in Kona, Hawaii—becoming the
first female leg amputee to ever attempt the
race. Although she failed in her first attempt,
she returned to Kona in 2005 with the motto
“Unfinished Business” and became the first
female leg amputee to finish the race.
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Tips for
Thriving After
Amputation
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Hugh Herr lost both of his legs below the
knees from severe frostbite after an iceclimbing trip on New Hampshire’s Mt.
Washington went horribly wrong. After his
amputations, Herr earned a doctorate degree
from Harvard University and is now head of
the Biomechatronics research group at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Media Lab. In 2011, TIME magazine named
Herr as the “Leader of the Bionic
Age” because of his work in creating bionic
limbs that emulate the function of natural limbs.
These are just a few examples of the thousands of people who have
gone on to live amazing lives after losing limbs.
Whether you want to explore new opportunities as an amputee,
live the way you lived before, or simply get to the point where
you can get out of bed in the morning, get into your wheelchair
or prosthetic devices, and do basic things around the house, you
should be able to do almost anything you want to do—you just
might have to learn to do it in a different way.
It may not seem like it now, but your life does not have to be over
because of amputation. You can instead choose to start a new one.
Where you go from here is largely up to you.
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S et another goal (and another,
and another…). Once you’ve
achieved your first goal (perhaps
standing again), set another one
(perhaps taking your first step), so
you’ll always have something new
to achieve. As you accomplish
each goal, your self-esteem will
grow, motivating you to achieve
even greater successes.
Accept the support of family,
friends, and other amputees.
esearch living with limb loss.
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Learn from others and be open to
considering their advice.
on’t give up. If you fall or get
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knocked down, dust yourself off
and look for alternative ways
to accomplish your goals. “Fall
seven times, stand up eight,”
advises a Japanese proverb.
Even if you fall over and over, if
you stand up the last time, you
will ultimately succeed.
take no
7 Don’t
for an answer.
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For more information or to place an
order, please contact Claire at
[email protected]
or call 303.255.0843.